Nas has signed a book deal, agreeing to publish his memoirs next year. A decade after he changed his mind about calling one of his albums I Am … The Autobiography, the rapper will write an actual autobiography called It Ain't Hard to Tell, in collaboration with music journalist Touré.

"This is hip-hop history," Touré wrote on Twitter on Monday. "I've been talking to Nas about writing his autobiography for 15 years … We'll tell his life and deconstruct some songs." While Touré defended his right to "co-author" another person's autobiography, he also clarified that the book will tell Nas's whole story, not just his heyday. "A memoir is about a certain period in your life. An autobiography is about your whole life."

The obvious model for Nas's book is Decoded, a 2010 memoir by Jay-Z. But there are other hip-hop precedents, including a 2007 book by Chuck D and a 2008 memoir by Grandmaster Flash. This week, Nas's former collaborator Common will publish his own 320-page memoir, One Day It'll All Make Sense.

According to Rap Radar, Nas's autobiography will explore his feuds with fellow rapper Jay-Z and US TV host Bill O'Reilly, as well as his mother's battle with cancer, his four-year marriage to Kelis, and his relationship with Carmen Bryan, the mother of Nas's first child, who published a tell-all book in 2006.

It Ain't Hard to Tell will be released by the Simon & Schuster imprint Atria Books in autumn 2012.